The Landing on Athos-9
by Darrell1
Summary: Second chapter is now up! "Zerg Encounter of the Third Kind" Zephyr and his bunch begin the Athos assault... Comments Welcomed, a bit of language.
1. Default Chapter

Athos-9, a planet roughly the size of Earth in diameter, though nowhere near in population, or the particular type of population. A giant floating rock sphere dotted with jungles, forests, deserts, mountain ranges, oceans, islands, a breathable atmosphere for humans, and more important than that-a fortune in Minerals and Vespene Gas. Long ago the possibilities for both of these had been realized by the Terran forces, and they were known to spend countless hours searching for these...the life and blood of their machines and troops.  
  
Of course, the Terrans were not the only ones who needed the resource. There were also the Bugs, the Zerg, a mix of dozens of alien strain enslaved under the Overmind and Kerrigan, the Queen of Blades. They also required Minerals and Vespene Gas to keep their claws sharp, and feed their horrendously advanced metabolisms. Athos-9 had been under their influence for quite some time, that much was obvious from an orbital view of the planet, which could reveal thousands of miles of creep all over the planet's surface. A planet which would be all but impossible to claim from their grasp, all but impossible, save for one Terran General.  
  
"General!", said the young man decked out in Confederate Terran Armor. He stood at average height, and his voice showed both his lack of age and lack of experience on the battlefield. A label revealing him to be "Pr. Stelton" decorated his left breast.  
  
The man beside of him turned to look at the young man, and standing at 6'3" in his armor, he was an impressive man indeed. His armor glistened in the evening sun, and his Gauss Rifle was hung like a sleeping serpent over his shoulder. A label on his left breast labeled him as "Gen Zephyr", General Mykael Zephyr of the Terran Forces. The youngest man appointed to the position of General in the history of the Confederate forces. He was in his early forties, and the brown hair was beginning to show it's peppered gray. The boy hadn't saluted, and neither did he-that was the first thing an enemy would look for on a battlefield, officers.  
  
"What is it, son...?"  
  
"Progress report on the base, Sir. All battalions are reporting a big 'Go' in all sectors. Colonel Azure and his boys and girls are out scouting on their Vultures now, laying out a few surprises in case any a' those Bugs try sneaking in on us", they both shared a grin at that, "SCV's are working at max, and we figure we should be all set up in a few weeks. But, looks like your plan worked like a charm, General. Stupid Bugs haven't even figured out we're here, yet", Stelton said while he rattled off the information he had memorized on the way over.  
  
"Good. I don't want those Bugs to get an early jump on us here, so I want to keep as quiet as we can. If we're lucky, we should be able to get a firm toehold here before anything happens. How is Admiral Chaney holding out with the air support...?", the General asked while he surveyed the immediate area.  
  
All around them vehicles and troops were moving in a constant flow. That was one thing about Zephyr's bunch, nobody sat on their ass when there was work to do. All of them knew that, and all of them did just that-and they made a damn good job of it. Mykael refused to have it any other way, and not even he would weasel his way out of a job if it needed to be done. Everyone worked...officer, private, General, cook, it didn't matter. All of them put in their part, and they felt they were all far better for it. The General wouldn't disagree with that assumption.  
  
"The Admiral got on the horn with the Comm office just about an hour or two ago. He's holding behind one of the moons, keeping himself out of the way until we can get some Starports up-and-running down here. Science Vessels are keeping an eye on things with scanners, and Wraiths are working with Azure to do get some Scouting done from above. He wishes you the best, and told us 'Not to let that bull-headed bastard get his ass bit by any of those Turd-lings'", Stelton said with a laugh, and the General joined in on it. Chaney and Zephyr had been together for years, and they enjoyed poking at each other at any chance they got.  
  
"He's just mad because he has to stare at that Moon's ass all day while we work down here. Once he manages to bite into a piece of those Bugs, he'll be fine...", Zephyr glanced upwards towards the sky, and then back down to the Private in front of him, "Anything else, Stelton?"  
  
Stelton nodded his head, "Yes sir, so far. You'll be updated immediately if anything else occurs."  
  
The Private felt a bit of shock at first when he finally figured out the General had actually said his name. Most officers in the Confederation couldn't give a rat's ass, quite literally, about what a subordinate said, let alone his name. But, that was something else that was unique about Zephyr's army, he had heard. Mykael tried to know all of his troops, tried to be their friend as well as General-he had never liked the idea of his troops being so formal with him all the time. The other Confederate Generals hated it, tried to have him de-ranked for his unique outlooks, but his record showed that his techniques worked. And, as long as they worked, they would let Mykael run his army however he damn well pleased, and that suit Mykael just fine.  
  
"Excellent. And, when Colonel Azure gets back from his scouting mission, let me know. I'd like to talk to him personally about what he's found so far.", Zephyr added with a pat on the private's shoulder.  
  
"You'll be the first to know, sir.", replied Stelton, and then the Private turned and made his way back into the camp. Zephyr watched him go, and then turned to look out at the rest of the camp.  
  
"Fine boy. I just hope he manages to make it back in one piece...", Zephyr thought while he made his way towards the small series of buildings that were functioning as temporary bunkers and garages for the troops and vehicles. Even though Zephyr sported some of the smallest casualties of the Confederation's Army, there were still casualties, and nothing hurt him more than knowing he was very possibly sending men to their death every time they went out. It was a heavy weight to bear, and any one who said different had no idea what they were talking about.  
  
A few hours later, Zephyr was inside of the small building that was functioning as Command Central. In the main back was his personal office, while the rest of the building was dedicated to Radio Operators, Communications Experts, and walls of charts that monitored the base. No one had slept since they had landed a few days before, well, no one except Rosey and her bunch. She was in charge of all the Dropships and their crew, and had led the first Dropship through the atmosphere. They had managed to sleep in a few hours while every one was busy camouflaging the vehicles, and starting to set up camp. Mykael didn't say a negative word about it; "I sure don't want to be flown around by a pilot who hasn't slept in the past week" was all he commented.  
  
He sat on the edge of his bed thinking his way through the current situation while rolling one of the few cigarettes he allowed himself these days. He lit the tip with a lighter, and then pocketed it in his gray shirt. The front was unbuttoned halfway, it didn't look like a General's attire, but he was comfortable. His eyes drifted toward the far wall, where a map of Athos-9 had been mounted. There were various pins to designate their base, an off-location of Chaney's ships, and the known locations of the Bugs. The latter took up a much larger portion of the map.  
  
"Looks like we've got our work cut out for us this time...", he muttered under his breath while he pulled the cigarette out of his mouth.  
  
"Sir!", came the voice of a blonde woman in uniform as she opened the door to the General's office, "Colonel Azure and his Scouts have just came back from their little trip."  
  
"Thank you, Suzy", the General said as he stood up. The girl smiled, nodded, and left. She had hoped to catch him undressing-it was common knowledge, among the women anyway, that almost every girl was attracted to Mykael in one way or another. They didn't know if Mykael knew or not, but if he did, he didn't show it, and that made it all the more interesting.  
  
Zephyr headed out the front door of the CC to meet Azure personally and discuss how the trip went. The General always liked to know what was going on with the enemy, it allowed him to begin work on a strategy ASAP, and in this particular situation, he was going to need every strategy he could think of. But, the General had a pretty vivid imagination when it came to thinking up some effective strategies, and none of the Terrans were worried about it. They were all convinced they would come out on top, they wouldn't think of anything else. Losing was all in the mind and Winning was all in self-motivation, and they would never consider the first...and had more than their share of the latter.  
  
End  
  
Well, this is my attempt at introducing a character I've been rattling around in my head for a while. Not exactly packed with action, but trust me, it'll come later. Any types of comments are more than welcome.   



	2. Zerg Encounter of the Third Kind

The Lair loomed against the backdrop of a fresh valley, it's tissue a dull brown, though it was still a menacing sight to behold, if one knew what it meant. Around the main building, purple Creep stretched out in all directions, hiding the grass and flowers that would have normally covered the bottom of the valley. Spore and Sunken Colonies were dotted all around it, along with Hatcheries, Evolution Chambers, Hydralisk Dens, Spawning Pools, and huge mutating pieces of flesh-one could only guess what they were exactly, but whatever they turned out to be, it wouldn't be anything good. Surrounding the buildings, the Bugs skittered from one place to another, going wherever the Overmind commanded them through the floating Overlords.  
  
"There she is, General", whispered a man in Confederate Marine armor as he pointed down to the base. He and the man beside him were on their stomachs, peering through binoculars to watch the Bugs work from a distance.  
  
"The closest one to Camp, Dan...?", asked Mykael as he lowered the binoculars from his face. Dan had already removed the binoculars, and was simply looking back and forth between Mykael and the Bug Nest.  
  
Dan Azure nodded, "Closest one the Scouts and I could find. Lucky for us the little bastards haven't had much time to build up, must be new around here."  
  
It had been two weeks since Mykael and his forces had landed on Athos-9, and Dan Azure had spent 90% of that time scurrying the landscape with his Scouts. Vultures, Ghosts, Marines, and lightly armored Goliaths had slowly made their way in a wide circle around the Terran camp, and had managed to discover this Bug Nest on the sixth day out. The base was built by one of seven warring factions of Bugs on Athos-9, and although why they were at each other's throats had slipped the Terrans completely, they refused to look a gift-horse in the mouth. It was how they managed to slip through the atmosphere in the first place, catching the Bugs while a large skirmish was taking place on the other side of the planet. While they were distracted, the small army of Dropships had made their way through the atmosphere, and touched down on the surface.  
  
"Alright, then. Let's see if we can't stir this nest up a little", Mykael said as he stood up from the ground.  
  
"Better be careful, Mykael. Sometimes those wasps can sting if you mess with their nest too much"  
  
"Not this time, Dan. I brought lots of Bug-Repellant"  
  
They laughed as they walked down the small slope, and emerged into a small crowd of infantry and vehicles. Last-minute checks were being performed by Medics on personnel, and those already checked went over their vehicles and weapons, then went over them again. Several tanks, Vultures, and Goliaths stood ready, while Marines and Firebats waited for the command from Platoon and Battalion Leaders for orders. Behind them, Wraiths waited to lift off, and begin the Aerial Assault against the Bugs below. Three Science Vessels were accompanying them to lend an extra-hand. Earlier, Mykael had ordered everyone draw straws, half of the army would attack the Zerg base, the other half would remain back for back-up and defense for the Camp. Then, he divided the attacking force into four groups, each with enough vehicles and personnel to stir up a shit-load of trouble. It was a classic case of hitting the enemy from so many sides, by the time they figured out who to attack first, God was already telling them it was a little too late.   
  
Mykael glanced at his watch as he passed a Repair SCV, "One hour left before the hammer comes down, Dan. I want you to go back to your Scouts and run over plans with the Ghosts on how this is going to run as far as they're concerned. Same thing with all Batt Comms, I want everyone ready to head out ten minutes ago..."  
  
"Right on it, Mykael", Dan tossed the General a sloppy salute, and headed off into the crowd while barking for his Scouts to haul ass. Mykael just smirked as he watched the man go; the blonde-haired gentleman who enjoyed tea off the battlefield-a deadly man with a weapon and some booby traps while on it.  
  
"Just what do you think you're doing?" came the roar behind the General, "You get out of that goddamned armor right now!"  
  
The voice was that of Lamar Fitch, the head of the Medical Department in Mykael's section of the Confederate army. He was in his sixties, but by the way he carried himself, you'd think he was still as young as ever. His face was red with anger, and the female Medic beside of him was trying to calm him down. She sighed and looked up to Mykael, and brushed a strand of brown hair away from her forehead in surrender. Lamar's daughter, Jenny, had never really been able to talk any sense into Lamar-but then, neither had anyone else.  
  
"I thought I was standing here, talking to Dan, before some old goat started yelling at me", Mykael said with an innocent grin as he turned to Lamar.  
  
"I might be old, but someone has to talk some sense into you! You are a General, Mykael, not one of your Marines! Your job is to watch from BEHIND the lines, not leading the troops from the FRONT of it!", Lamar began the age-old argument. Almost every time they went into battle Mykael had to go through this, and every time Lamar lost his temper. He fumed for minutes on end, and the General just kept quiet, letting the man get his fill in.  
  
"Daddy, you should really watch your anger, it does horrible things to your blood pressure", Jenny whispered as she leaned into her father's ear. It only earned her a rather nasty look, and a chuckle from the General.  
  
"Fine! But, you get one little scratch, and I will have your ass in a sickbed so quick, your grandchild's head will spin! And you won't be sneaking out either, I'll chain you down if I have to!", Lamar sighed, "Now, come on, if you're going out there you get the same check-up as anybody else..."  
  
"I wouldn't have it any other way, Lamar. I know your gentle hands will take very good care of me"  
  
Jenny giggled as her father turned around, and led the two of them through the camp, muttering and cussing under every single breath along the way. Twenty minutes later, Lamar was running after Mykael with a syringe held over his head like a battleaxe. "All I said was 'Where's my lollipop?'!", Mykael said as he passed by a few laughing Marines.  
  
  
Special Agent Carter glanced over his shoulder at the terrain behind him and then forward at the base a few hundred yards away. Though he couldn't see any one else, he knew there were six other men with him, all cloaked, all armed, and all very deadly. They were Dan Azure's best; 'Specter Group', as they were known, represented the finest Ghosts he had ever had the pleasure of working with, or so Dan said. The Ghosts all accused him of bullshitting, but it did do a lot to their morale. Made them want to make Dan proud, and more than that, make the General proud.  
  
Just up ahead, a group of Hydralisks and Zerglings working as sentries moved along the soil, hissing to each other, their scythe arms and claws held ready at their sides. A stick was pointed, and then dropped, and all the Ghosts knew exactly what to do. Almost as one, they all moved forward, the C-10 canister rifles locked and ready to tear into the unsuspecting Bugs. All looked to make sure nothing was around, and then their barrels flashed, tearing the insects' chests and heads to shreds while they impacted with soft tissue. The agents waited thirty seconds, but nothing happened, which meant that the sounds had gone unnoticed. They moved back into their previous position, and crouched down, pausing to reload their weapons.  
  
"This is Phantom, itch has been scratched, over", Carter whispered as he tapped the side of his helmet.  
  
"Roger that, Phantom. Move on to next one, over"  
  
"Roger, Phantom out."  
  
Carter checked over his weapon, then glanced over his shoulder, "Let's move out. We still have three more of these to take care of."  
  
They stood up, and moved on to the next position. The Ghosts were slowly clearing the way for the rest of the forces to move in without any skirmishes that could cause some problems. They carefully scanned each location, and if they found any burrows, they promptly shot the Bugs before they got a chance to sneak out. Each encounter was reported, and then recorded, before they moved on. Minutes ticked by, and with each sentry cleared, the corresponding group moved forward to prepare for the assault on the base.  
  
"General", a young man said as he lowered a headset from his ears, "Carter and his bunch just reported in. The last of the sentries have been taken care of, and the burrows have all been cleared out."  
  
Mykael nodded, "Tell him to head back here and take it easy for a bit, then. He's done his job on this run."  
  
"Sure thing, General", the radio-operator paused, "And, good luck out there"  
  
"Thanks, Son", Mykael said as he patted the boy on his shoulder, and then mounted his Vulture. All around him, men and women were doing the same; booting up their systems, and heading out across the landscape. It was a quiet ride, which meant Carter and his bunch had done their jobs. Some of Zephyr's bunch would have enjoyed a small firefight or two along the way, but they just contented themselves in waiting for the big one when they hit the Bug Nest.  
  
  
On the upper rim of the valley, Mykael glanced down from his position on his Vulture, looking from time to time at his watch. A short distance away, Siege Tanks were locked down, and ready to start firing down into the base and get the party rolling.  
  
"Here we are boys and girls", Zephyr spoke into the com-link in his helmet which directed his message to all the troops, "Once the tanks start firing, I want the Vultures up front to start dropping mines in front of the enemy. Goliaths go up next, Marines and Firebats go behind them for extra cover. The tanks will start picking off the Colonies first, give us Groundies and our Pilots one less thing to worry about. Shoot anything that has more than two arms and two legs, or at least had more before it lost the extra ones"  
  
It was grim soldier humor, but they all enjoyed it. It was the last few seconds before the dance started, and everyone could feel the rush starting. Mykael readied his Gauss C-14, modified to fire U-238 rounds for better penetration and range. He had suggested all of his men get the upgrade, but some preferred the spike, and they were welcomed to it. Whatever they were more comfortable using, as far as the General was concerned. Wraiths stood ready to fly in behind the troops, and Science Vessels prepared the Defense Matrixes that would help cut down on some of the casualties.  
  
"NOW!", came the roar over the intercom, and the peaceful valley air erupted with a volley of Shockwave Cannons. The center of the Bug Base rocked as the shells began landing, causing one of the Hydra Dens to explode in a shower of blood. Drones were killed by the dozens, and immediately the base was thrown into a rush of activity.  
  
The Vultures launched forward, Ion Thrusters propelling them down the small slope towards the awaiting Bugs below. Goliaths, Marines, and Firebats started soon after, pouring down from four different spots around the valley. The tanks concentrated in the middle of the Nest, then worked their way out, picking off the Sunken Colonies via directions the Ghosts had horned in earlier. The Bugs were caught off-guard for a moment, but with a surge, they swarmed out like cockroaches to meet the enemy. They hissed, they drooled, they slithered, they crawled out of the Creep, and as the Terrans had expected, they died soon thereafter.  
  
The ground was torn apart by cannon fire, and flames shot out from the wrists of Firebats as the ground troops began their attack. Zerglings screamed while their skin was torched by the plasma's heat, cooking them from the inside out. Gauss Rifles flashed, and bursts of gunfire erupted from the valley; the men began spreading out, using their advantage of higher ground to knock the Bugs back before they got the chance to come within attacking range. The screams of wounded and dying were drowned out as another round of Siege Tank fire tore into more of the Bugs' Nest, slowly picking off their defenses.  
  
A small group of Defilers unburrowed not too far from the General's position, only to have one promptly torn apart by a mixture of Mykael's depleted uranium shells, and an anti-personnel grenade launched off the bike. They slithered after him, and just as they brought the Plague spores out of their throats to destroy the horrid human, they wandered right into a Spider Mine Field Mykael had dropped in the process of passing them up. A loud explosion sent dirt and pieces of tissue in all directions, and Mykael never felt better.  
  
"Shit, here come the Flyers!", Mykael heard over the intercom as Mutalisks and Guardians rose up from within the Zerg base. They screeched, roared, and flew forward to assist their brethren in the battle, spewing their Wurms and balls of corrosive acids into the ranks of the Terrans.  
  
"This is Sergeant Matthews, the Colonies have been cleared, Wraiths are safe to go!", came another voice.  
  
"Oh God, I'm hit! Damn Guardian nailed me with that acid, MEDIC!"  
  
Hellfire Anti-Aircraft Missiles locked onto their targets, and began clipping the wings off the Zerg Flyers. Light could be seen flashing all across the sky as the missiles found their targets, and Bugs began falling from the sky. One or two managed to fall and crush some of their ground allies, which meant the Terrans got to save a few more rounds of ammunition. Marines began firing ammo towards the heavens, while Firebats and Vultures worked their way across the ground. SCVs followed along, repairing damage to vehicles while they went, lending a second life to the Terrans.  
  
"There ya go, all fixed!", radioed one SCV as his laser dulled, and he stepped back from a Goliath.  
  
"Thanks, remind me to pour you a beer later. J..."  
  
He was cut off as a Hydralisk unburrowed behind the SCV, and shredded the top open, the tip of the scythe burying into the head of the Private inside the Repair Vehicle. It hissed as drool fell on top of the body, and it slid the blade loose, just in time to see the barrel of a 30mm cannon flash, and cut it in half. The pilot cried inside, he had known James almost all of his life, and seeing him die like that was something he wasn't prepared for. The large machine turned around, and ran full-speed towards the Nest, picking off Bugs as it went, to pave his path to vengeance for his friend.  
  
"Where the hell are those Wraiths, we're getting murdered out here!", a Marine said as he watched a Wurm slam into the ground not too far from him, courtesy of a Mutalisk flying almost on his ass. And, at nearly that same moment, four missiles turned the Mutalisk into nothing more than a pile of useless body parts. The marine grinned.  
  
"Well, I'll be damned! It's about time you fella's got here!"  
  
"Just waiting on you slow-pokes to make us a path", came the reply through the intercom as the squadron whizzed overhead, using their Cloak technology to hide them from sight. Belly-lasers flashed, and literally cut the Bugs apart while Mutalisks and Guardians were promptly blown out of the sky.  
  
Meanwhile, the General was busy assisting a platoon of Marines and Firebats with a few renegade Queens. They had ensnared the two Goliaths that had tagged along, and the platoon was trying to kill them while holding back the Zerglings that were testing out their claws and teeth on the Goliath's armor.   
  
"Get off my legs, you little bastards!", the Goliath pilot yelled from his seat in the cockpit. His weapons had been clogged by the biological web, and prevented him from retaliating.  
  
Two short bursts from a Gauss knocked the Zerglings to the ground, their bodies peppered with bullet holes. They hissed, but their organs were shredded to the point of no longer being able to move, only capable of lying on their back and trying to scare away their attacker.  
  
"Tell the Overmind that there's a nice big spot in Hell waiting on him", the General said as he looked down at the wounded Zerglings. Their only reply was a series of hisses, which found their answer in the form of two more bursts into their faces from the barrel of Mykael's rifle.  
  
The Queens discovered their energy was depleted on the Ensnare nets, and turned to make a retreat, but were caught in the blasts from a pair of wrist-mounted flame-throwers. They screamed, and just as the thought that they were caught in a box crossed their minds, the Marines finished them off with a combination of depleted uranium and armor-piercing nails. Behind them, Wraiths backed up by Defense Matrixes activated from near-by Science Vessels started the last runs on the enemy flyers, and Siege Tanks tore apart the buildings from a safe distance. The Creep slowly retreated back from its previous bounds, brought further and further back with each passing moment. The ground rumbled with the impact of the Shock Shells, and the stench of dead corpses was heavy in the air. Fuel, excrement from suddenly released bowels, torched flesh, sulfur-the signs of battle, and in this case, signs that the Terrans were winning.  
  
"Hell of a shot, General", said a Marine as he loaded a fresh clip of shells into his Rifle.  
  
"You weren't so bad yourself, Simmons", the General replied as he glanced back at the base, "Now, let's see what we can do about getting our friend here out of these webs...and let's hurry. Those goddamned Bugs stink when they combust"  
  
Inside the base, Dan Azure and his Scouts were carefully sneaking from one building to another, making sure to stop periodically and let the Tank Commanders know where they were. It wasn't any of their wishes to end up as a casualty of friendly fire, especially from a Shock Cannon. Their job was to remove any type of threat that might have been hiding, and bring the war up-close-and-personal to the Bugs, wherever they were. Vultures dropped mines behind them, and they could hear explosions in the background as the Bugs made an attempt at retreat or a last-ditch attack, only to be shredded by the exploding Spiders. Goliaths provided heavy support for the group as they moved along, to reduce the chances of them getting caught in a fix without any big ammo to get them out.  
  
"Hatchery remains", Dan said as he passed a flattened pile of scorched muscle and spilled fluid. A Goliath turned to look, and the pilot heard a 'squish' as a Larva found itself on the wrong end of the machine's foot.  
  
"Bug remains, too...", the pilot said, and they snickered while they moved on to the next building.  
  
Finally, the battle began to wind down, and the troops met around the Nest, watching the mighty Siege Tanks go to work. Dan and his bunch walked out of the far right side of the Bug Nest, a few of them smoking cigarettes, their own small way of celebrating on the battlefield. There would no doubt be a much larger celebration once they got back to Camp, but that would be later. At the moment, there was still work to do.  
  
"Finish up, Dan?", Mykael asked as he approached the man. The two of them stood at almost the same height, though Dan was a few years Mykael's younger.  
  
"Not a thing left moving, Mykael. We cleared out all the ones who thought they'd try to hide it out, but they didn't hide well enough to get away from my Scouts..."  
  
"...Or your Spider Mines", the General finished with a grin.  
  
"I'll admit, our little explosive friends do make our job a little easier", Dan returned the grin as he patted the General's Vulture.  
  
"Any wounded?", Mykael asked as he looked off to the group of Scouts, and then back to Dan.  
  
"Two wounded, none killed. Nothing major, just a few scratches, I think they just wanted to see the nurses back at Lamar's", Dan said jokingly  
  
Mykael nodded, "We should know how many we have down in total in a few hours. I saw the Medic teams coming down to take care of our wounded a few minutes ago."  
  
"And the Bug wounded...?"  
  
In the background, the sound of shells exploding faded as the last building was brought down, and Tank Crews took a moment of rest from the constant reloading and roaring of the ShockWave Cannon. Dirt settled down, revealing a series of craters where shells had impacted in the first minutes of volley, or where Spider Mines detonated after some poor Turd-ling wandered over them. There was a moment of silence, and then single-shots of gunfire began ringing out, and one by one, the hissing of wounded Bugs faded into nothing.  
  
"The Marines are taking care of any Bug wounded now", Mykael said as he glanced out over the landscape. It was a hard thing to say, but he was a hard man, and those were hard times.  
  
Dan simply nodded, and pondered a spot of hot tea once he got back to Camp.   
  
After a last comb-over to check everything over to the General's satisfaction, the troops and vehicles loaded up, and headed back in the direction they came. The Wraiths zipped back towards Camp, escorting the Science Vessels to the finished StarPorts. The Siege Tanks, Goliaths, and Vultures would be checked over by the crews at the Factory, and repaired by SCVs if necessary. Medics would see to the wounded, and men would be buried by any able to carry a shovel. The Bug bodies were piled into one of the larger craters in the valley, and then covered with dirt in a quickly fashioned mass grave. It was more respect than they deserved, but the Terrans didn't need the bullet-ridden bodies lying around stinking up the whole place. Marines and Firebats would celebrate, Ghosts would discuss their mission with each other, pilots would jokingly compare kills, and Mykael Zephyr would enjoy a shot of Scotch and a cigarette, then sit behind his desk for a bit.  
  
Though, just as he was beginning to enjoy being immersed in his thoughts, Susy opened the door to his office carrying a large stack of papers.  
  
"What the hell is all that?", Mykael asked as he pulled the cigarette out of his lips.  
  
"Paperwork from the Confederacy, General. They expect it done in the next couple of days", she said softly, and then dropped the pile on Mykael's desk. The General just stared at the pile for a second, and barely noticed the door closing behind the young woman as she left.  
  
"....", he leaned forward in his chair, and put the first piece of paper in front of him. Mykael then pulled a pencil out of a drawer, and began the long process of writing.  
  
"I hate paperwork"  
  



End file.
